Former Boxing Champ Pawel Wolak to Make MMA Debut at Matrix Fights 9

Pawel
Wolak’s professional mixed martial arts debut finally has a
date and a venue.

The former WBC USNBC light middleweight interim champion will step
into the cage for the first time at Matrix
Fights 9, the promotion headed by ex-Bellator matchmaker Sam
Caplan. The event takes place on Dec. 5 at the Pennsylvania
National Guard Armory in Philadelphia. Wolak does not yet have an
opponent.

“Pawel wrestled in high school, and for the past couple of years he
has received world class training from Renzo
Gracie’s top MMA and BJJ instructors while also sparring the
likes of Eddie
Alvarez and Frank Edgar,” Caplan said in a release. “Simply
put, Pawel Wolak has all the tools to be a wrecking machine in
MMA... A lot of promotions pursued Pawel and his camp in order to
try and get him to make his debut on their show. We are very
excited that Pawel and his management team chose Matrix Fights as
the promotion where he will launch his professional MMA
career.”

Wolak first
announced his intentions to pursue a career in MMA more than
two years ago. The 33-year-old Pole retired from boxing in 2011
with a professional mark of 29-2-1. He last competed on Dec. 3,
2011, losing a unanimous decision to Delvin Rodriguez at Madison
Square Garden in New York. Wolak finished 19 of his foes via
knockout and was generally regarded as one of the top 10 fighters
in the world at his weight class.

“I plan on being champion,” Wolak said. “I am not doing this for
fun. I am doing this because I want to be world champion and the
most successful crossover boxer ever into MMA, and I believe I will
be. It won’t be tomorrow. It’s a process. But I come in respecting
every fighter out there regardless of their records and rank. I’m
not dumb enough to think that nobody is unbeatable. That’s why we
fight.”

Editor’s note: This item was updated on Oct. 21 at 4:03 p.m. PT.
The article originally stated that Wolak was a former WBC light
middleweight world champion.